26/02/2012

Today we cut the second foot off of our Kyra Sarakosti.
Tomorrow we will celebrate the Sunday of St. Gregory of Palamas. May you all
have a blessed third week of Lent!

For those of you not familiar with the Kyra Sarakosti tradition, here is a
little more about it.

In olden days, in order to keep track of the Lenten period, Kyra Sarakosti was
created. She was drawn in the image of a nun. She does not have a mouth to
remind us that we are fasting and her hands are crossed in prayer. She has
seven feet for the seven weeks of Great Lent. Every Saturday one of her feet
are cut off. After the last foot is cut off, it is placed in a bowl of fruits
and nuts and whoever finds it receives a special blessing. The winner will
write their name and year on the back of it and will keep it as a keepsake.

If you want to make one of these for your children, here is the recipe. It can
also be found in the Festive Fast
cookbook.

Combine flour, salt and cinnamon in a medium sized bowl and gradually add
enough water to form a stiff, but flexible dough. Roll dough out to 1/2"
thickness. With a sharp knife cut out the figure as shown above. Cut out two
long narrow strips for arms and join at shoulders (wet surface to which arms
will be applied). Make slits in dough for fingers. Mark closed eyelids and
noise with pointed object. Wipe entire figure down with a lightly dampened
cloth to make shiny. Bake in moderate oven until golden. *This is not edible!

24/02/2012

Before our
fall, the demons say that God is a friend of man; but after the fall, that He
is inexorable.

- Ladder of
Divine Ascent, 5.31

When we are thinking about committing a sin, the demons tell us, "Oh,
don't worry, God is a loving, merciful God, you can go ahead and commit the
sin, He'll forgive you!" But no sooner is the sin committed, than
they change their tune and tell us, "Oh, now you're in trouble! God saw
that, and He is a just God, who punishes every sin! There's no way He'll
forgive you for that."

Let us
remember this trick of the demons. God is indeed merciful, loving and
forgiving; He is also absolutely just, and will require an account from us at
the judgment even of every idle word, not to mention our sinful words and
deeds. But how much better for our spiritual lives if we remember the opposite
of what the demons tell us, namely, when we are tempted to sin, let us remember
that God sees everything, even the secret thoughts of the heart, and He will
require us to give account for it; but if we fall into sin, then let us
remember that God is merciful, and so be moved to repent for our sin. As one
father said, the question is not, "Why did you fall?" but rather,
"Why did you not get up again?"http://frbenedict.blogspot.co.nz/

22/02/2012

If you are a Lutheran, your religion was
founded by Martin Luther, an ex-monk of the Catholic Church, in the year 1517.

If you belong to the Church of England,
your religion was founded by King Henry VIII in the year 1534 because the Pope
would not grant him a divorce with the right to re-marry.

If you are a Presbyterian, your religion
was founded by John Knox in Scotland
in the year 1560.

If you are a Congregationalist, your
religion was originated by Robert Brown in Holland in 1582.

If you are Protestant Episcopalian, your
religion was an offshoot of the Church of England, founded by Samuel Senbury in
the American colonies in the 17th century.

If you are a Baptist, you owe the tenets
of your religion to John Smyth, who launched it in Amsterdam in 1606.

If you are of the Dutch Reformed Church,
you recognize Michelis Jones as founder because he originated your religion in New York in 1628.

If you are a Methodist, your religion
was founded by John and Charles Wesley in England in 1774.

If you are a Mormon (Latter Day Saints),
Joseph Smith started your religion in Palmyra,
New York, in 1829.

If you worship with the Salvation Army,
your sect began with William Booth in London
in 1865.

If you are Christian Scientist, you look
to 1879 as the year in which your religion was born and to Mary Baker Eddy as
its founder.

If you belong to one of the religious
organizations known as "Church of the Nazarene, Pentecostal Gospel,"
"Holiness Church," or "Jehovah's
Witnesses," your religion is one of the hundreds of new sects founded by
men within the past hundred years.

If you are Roman Catholic, your church
shared the same rich apostolic and doctrinal heritage as the Orthodox Church
for the first thousand years of its history, since during the first millennium
they were one and the same Church. Lamentably, in 1054, the Pope of Rome broke
away from the other four Apostolic Patriarchates (which include Constantinople,
Alexandria, Antioch
and Jerusalem),
by tampering with the Original Creed of the Church, and considering himself to
be infallible. Thus your church is 1,000 years old.

If
you are Orthodox Christian, your religion was founded in the year 33 by Jesus
Christ, the Son of God. It has not changed since that time. Our church is now
almost 2,000 years old. And it is for this reason, that Orthodoxy, the Church
of the Apostles and the Fathers is considered the true "one Holy Catholic
and Apostolic Church." This is the greatest
legacy that we can pass on to the young people of the new millennium.

19/02/2012

The foundation for the iconographic type, or composition, of the Icon of
the Mother of God “of the Sign” are the words of Prophet Isaiah:
“Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall
conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel” (Isaiah 7:14).
In the 13th century, the Kursk region, as
well as the rest of Russia
at the time, was subjected to terrible decimation by the Tatar invasion. The
city of Kursk
was completely destroyed and grew into a wild, overgrown forest, populated by
wild animals. The residents of the city of Ryl’sk, 90 versts (60 miles), who had somehow
been spared from a Tatar invasion, would go there to hunt. And it happened that
in 1295, on the feast day of the Nativity of the Mother of God, a small troupe of
hunters from Ryl’sk arrived at the Tuskor
River, 27 versts (18 miles) from Kursk, to hunt. One of
them, a pious and honorable man, seeking prey in the woods, found a small icon
lying face down at the root of a tree. He had barely lifted the icon from the
ground to inspect it, when a strong wellspring of pure water burst forth from
the very spot where the icon lay. The icon turned out to be of the Mother of
God “of the Sign” type. The hunter realized that this was no ordinary icon. He
summoned his fellow hunters, and together they cut down timber and erected a
small chapel where they placed the newly-found icon. The people of Ryl’sk,
learning of the icon, began to visit it for veneration, and many miracles
occurred as a result.
Prince Vasily Shemyak of Ryl’sk, having heard about this Icon, ordered that
it be brought to his city, which was done with great ceremony: the entire city
emerged to greet the miraculous Icon as it approached amidst a procession of
the cross. Prince Vasily himself, however, declined to participate in the
ceremony—and was struck blind. But after his earnest repentance and prayer
before the Icon, he was granted sight again. In gratitude for this miracle, he
built a church dedicated to the Nativity of the Mother of God in Ryl’sk, where the
icon was then place, and where every year, on that feast day, the Icon is
celebrated.
But the icon did not stay in Ryl’sk for long. Three times it miraculously
disappeared from Ryl’sk, and it would be found again and again at the site
where the hunter found it. The people of Ryl’sk then understood that it was the
will of the Mother of God that Her icon should remain at the site of its
discovery, and they left it there permanently.
In 1383, the Kursk
region was once again subjected to looting by the Tatars. A band of them,
coming across the chapel, took the attending priest prisoner and decided to
burn the chapel down. But no matter what they tried, the chapel would not
ignite. The superstitious Tatars then seized the priest and accused him of
sorcery. The priest refuted their charge and pointed to the Icon inside the
chapel. The livid Tatars seized the holy image, hacked it into two and threw
the pieces away, then burned down the chapel. Fr Bogoliub was then taken away
as a slave.
But the priest stood fast to his Orthodox Christian faith even as a slave:
despite the pressure the applied on him to adopt their religion, he remained
unbowed, and lay all his hopes on God and His Most-Pure Mother. This hope was
not futile: once, as he was tending to a flock of sheep, he sang a prayer to
the Mother of God. A group of emissaries of the Muscovite prince, passing by on
their way to see the khan, heard the singing and, learneing that this slave was
a Russian priest, they ransomed him out of slavery. Fr Bogoliub then returned
to his homeland and settled once more where the chapel had once stood. Soon
thereafter he found the two pieces of the miracle-working Icon, and as he
placed them together, they immediately, miraculously grew together.
In 1597, by order of Tsar Feodor Ioannovich, the Icon was brought to Moscow and surrounded by
depictions of the Lord Sabaoth and the Old Testament prophets who had foretold
the selection, labors and service of the Most-Blessed Virgin Mary. In 1603,
Pseudo-Dimitry I took the Icon from Kursk to his
camp at Putivl’, then to Moscow,
where it was kept in the royal palace.
In 1615, by a special request by the people of Kursk,
Tsar Mikhail Feodorovich commanded that the miracle-working Icon be returned
from Moscow to Kursk and placed in the Kursk Cathedral.
Tsarina Irina Feodorovna adorned the Icon with a bejeweled riza, after which it
was returned to its chapel. That same year, with the help of the Tsar, a church
dedicated to the Nativity of the Most-Holy Mother of God was erected on the
site of the chapel, and a monastery founded there, while a second church was
built over the original spring dedicated to the Life-Bearing Wellspring. The
new monastery became known as the Root Hermitage in honor of the appearance of the
Icon at the root of a tree. Since 1618, the Icon spent most of each year in Kursk, and would be
brought to the Root Hermitage for a brief time.
In 1676, the Icon was taken to the Don River
to bless the Don Cossacks. In 1684, Tsars John and Peter Alexeevich sent a copy
of the holy Icon to Kursk
with the order that this copy accompany Orthodox warriors into battle. In 1687,
the Icon was sent to the Great Army. In 1689, copies of the Icon were given to
the armies heading for the Crimean Campaign. In 1812, a copy of the holy
Icon was sent to General Kutuzov’s army. There have been many copies of the
Kursk-Root Icon, some of which have also been glorified for working miracles.
Since 1806, by Royal decree, the miracle-working Icon was to be kept at
Kursk-Root Hermitage from the Friday of the 9th week after Pascha until
September 12. During that period every year, the Icon would be brought from Kursk to the Kursk-Root
Hermitage and then back with a solemn procession of the cross which traveled
the entire way, totaling 27 versts (18 miles).
Several horrifying events are connected with the miracle-working Icon in
pre-Revolutionary Russia,
for instance, the explosion of a hellish bomb inside Kursk Cathedral, the aim
of which was destroy the holy image. The church was destroyed, yet the Icon
remained whole. This terrible episode was explained years later in Frankfurt, Germany,
where the Icon was brought. The priest accompanying the Icon, we learn from the
book by Archbishop Seraphim (Ivanov, +1987) of Chicago and Detroit, Odigitrija
russkogo zarubezhija [The Hodigitria of the Russian Diaspora], was taken
aside by an old man, who said to him: “I was a cohort of [the terrorist]
Ufimtsev in the attempt to blow up the Icon. I was a young man, and didn’t
believe in God. I wanted to test whether God exists: if He does, He wouldn’t
allow such a great holy icon to be destroyed. Afterwards, I began to fervently
believe in God, and to this day I bitterly repent in my terrible act.” The old
man prostrated himself before the Icon and left the church.
Now a few words about Archbishop Feofan of Kursk and Oboyansk, who brought the Icon
abroad, and thanks to whom this holy image was saved from desecration by the
Bolsheviks. Vladyka
Feofan (Gavrilov) was born on December 26, 1872, in the Orlov Diocese
to a clerical family. In 1893, he graduated from Orel Seminary, and in 1897,
ordained to the priesthood. In 1902, he enrolled in Kiev Theological
Academy, where he was
tonsured a monk. Finishing the Academy in 1906 with a Master’s degree, Fr
Feofan was appointed Deputy Inspector of Bezhetsk Theology
School. In 1908, he was
appointed Inspector of Volhyn’ Seminary, and in 1910, became the Rector of
Vitebsk Seminary. In December 1913, he was consecrated to the episcopacy in the
Cathedral of the Mother of God of the Sign in Kursk
as Bishop of Ryl’sk, Vicar Bishop of Kursk
and Oboyan’. The new bishop loved to serve in Kazan Cathedral in Kursk, the cornerstone of which had been blessed by St
Ioasaf of Belgorod
in 1752. Servant of God Isidor, the father of St Seraphim of Sarov, helped
build this church. On the 9th Friday after Pascha of 1767, in the Mashnin
courtyard (the family of the future saint), which was located near the church,
the young Prokhor was miraculously cured by the Kursk Icon. It is interesting
to note that in the lower church of the Kazan Cathedral, dedicated to St
Sergius of Radonezh, there is a lifetime portrait of St Seraphim sent by
Hegumen Nifont of Sarov Hermitage to his brother Alexei, with news of the
repose of the miracle-worker.
When the Archbishop of Kursk retired in 1917, Bishop Feofan was unanimously
chosen by the clergy and flock to be their ruling bishop. As Bishop of Kursk,
Vladyka Feofan and his spiritual children endured the theft of the Kursk Icon
from the Cathedral in 1918. It happened as follows:
On Wednesday of the 6th week of Great Lent, pre-sanctified Liturgy was
celebrated by Hieromonk Germogen (Zolenko, who died as an archimandrite in the
Holy Land in 1958). Returning to the church for great compline, he saw
Hieromonk Pitirim at the Cathedral entrance along with the monastery’s ogarochnik,
a novice responsible for the collection of candle stubs, who had discovered the
theft of the miracle-working Icon, the Holy Lamb (the Gifts prepared for
pre-sanctified Liturgy) and the gold tabernacle. The alarmed monastic brethren
immediately reported this to Vladyka Feofan, who sent a telegram to the head of
the Moscow
criminal investigation department. The local atheists were not questioned, and
the blame was laid at the feet of the monks themselves, including Vladyka
Feofan, who were all placed under house arrest. So the monks of Znamensky
Monastery, having lost their most prized holy icon, were faced to greet Pascha
with some sorrow. But the Resurrected Christ brought consolation to the
brethren, for on the Thursday after St
Thomas Sunday, a homeless man found the Icon, but
without the valuable riza, near Theodosius’ well. This well, tradition had it,
was dug out by the Hegumen of the Kievo-Pechersky Lavra himself, St Theodosius,
on whose very feast day the Icon was found. It is therefore noteworthy that the
miracle-worker of the Kiev
monastery seems to have participated in interceding for his fellow countrymen.
Learning of the finding of the Icon, Bishop Feofan ordered that all the bells
be rung, and set out on a procession of the cross with all the monks to the
site where the miraculous Icon was found.
Soon after Kursk
was seized by the Volunteer (White) Army in September 1919, they found two gold
icon-holders from the Kursk Icon in the offices of the Cheka (Bolshevik secret
police). The rejoicing, grateful people of Kursk began a constant stream of prayers
before the Icon, knowing that it would soon leave their city. Vladyka Feofan,
fearing the desecration of the Icon by the advancing godless forces, left Kursk on November 18,
1919, carrying in his hands the miracle-working Icon. In 1920, the Icon was
finally brought out of its homeland by Vladyka Feofan.
In 1925, by decision of the Synod of Bishops Abroad, and with the consent of
the keeper of the Icon, Archbishop Feofan, the Hodigitria of the Diaspora was
taken to the Russian Holy Trinity
Church in Belgrade. After the Germans occupied Yugoslavia,
Archbishop Feofan took the Icon to Hopovo Monastery. Soon afterwards,
Archbishop Feofan was left Croatia
for Belgrade,
where he lived in great need until the end of his life, in 1943.
It is noteworthy that it was before this very icon that the great St John (Maximovich) of Shanghai
and San Francisco
the Miracle-worker, died in 1966.
Let us thank the Lord, Who has given us this great holy Icon of the Mother
of God, Who illuminates all the church events and celebrations of the Russian
Orthodox Church Outside of Russia and shows us the path in today’s world.http://www.synod.com/synod/enghistory/enkursk.html

09/02/2012

A foremost problem within the parishes of the Orthodox Church is the
correct understanding of the requirements for reception of the Immaculate
Mysteries. Our churches are open to all. Whoever considers themselves Orthodox
Christians may approach unhindered to pray to God, to hear the teaching and to
receive antidoron/blessed bread. However, it is not possible for all to receive
the Immaculate Mysteries. It is just like with a pharmacy, entrance into the
pharmacy is not forbidden, but one will not receive strong medication without
first presenting a doctor’s prescription, so we too within the Orthodox Church.
There are certain requirements for the reception of Holy Communion.

The spiritual father’s permission to receive Holy Communion is identical to
a doctor’s prescription for strong medication. Just as with our health, we
select a doctor for our physical ailments and we do not go to quack or ignorant
physicians who do not have a medical license or to those who have had their
medical license taken away because of their ineptitude. Similarly in the
spiritual realm, the spiritual doctor to whom we go for the healing of our
souls must be canonical. In other words, he must have a canonical
ordination within the Orthodox Church. It is understood that
the spiritual father must exercise his priesthood unhindered, he himself must
not be weighed down by the penalty of suspension or deposition.

We must go to a canonical spiritual father within the Church at regular
intervals to confess our sins. We will receive guidance from him as to how we
must prepare in order to receive the Immaculate Mysteries. Preparation is
through the practice of the virtues; alms giving, prayer, study and proper
fasting.

The permission of the spiritual father is a necessary requirement for the
reception of Holy Communion. It should be noted that it is sufficient for the
spiritual father to be a canonical clergyman of the Orthodox Church . It is not
necessary that it be the priest of the parish one goes to in order to receive.

One who wishes to receive Holy Communion must have read the service of
preparation for Holy Communion from the night before, but also on the day which
he will receive he must come to church on time and follow the Matins and the
Divine Liturgy and not come at the last minute to receive except if there
exists a pressing reason. If he is the parent of underage children and for this
reason finds it difficult to come early he is obliged to read his morning
prayers – at least until the six-psalms- at home.

Certainly the greatest requirement for the reception of the Immaculate
Mysteries is that one be a member of the Orthodox Church.

06/02/2012

The following is a guide for
properly addressing Orthodox clergy. Most of the titles do not exactly
correspond to the terms used in Greek, Russian, or the other native languages
of the national Orthodox Churches, but they have been widely accepted as
standard English usages.

Greeting Clergy in Person. When
we address Deacons or Priests, we should use the title "Father."( Greek:
Pater, Serbian: Oche) Bishops we should address as "Your
Grace." Though all Bishops (including Patriarchs) are equal in the
Orthodox Church, they do have different administrative duties and honors that
accrue to their rank in this sense. Thus, "Your Eminence"(Greek:
Se-vas-mee-ótate) is the proper title for Bishops with suffragans or
assistant Bishops, Metropolitans, and most Archbishops (among the exceptions to
this rule is the Archbishop of Athens, who is addressed as "Your
Beatitude"). "Your Beatitude" is the proper title for Patriarchs
(except for the Ecumenical Patriarch in Constantinople,
who is addressed as "Your All—Holiness"). When we approach an
Orthodox Presbyter or Bishop (but not a Deacon), we make a bow by reaching down
and touching the floor with our right hand, place our right hand over the left
(palms upward), and say: "Bless, Father" (or "Bless, Your
Grace," or "Bless, Your Eminence," etc.). The Priest or Bishop
then answers, "May the Lord bless you," blesses us with the Sign of
the Cross, and places his right hand in our hands. We kiss then his hand.

We should understand that when
the Priest or Bishop blesses us, he forms his fingers to represent the
Christogram "ICXC" a traditional abbreviation of the Greek words for
"Jesus Christ" (i.e., the first and last letters of each of the words
"IHCOYC XRICTOC"). Thus, the Priest's blessing is in the Name of
Christ, as he emphasizes in his response to the believer's request for a
blessing. Other responses to this request are used by many clergy, but the
antiquity and symbolism of the tradition which we have presented are compelling
arguments for its use. We should also note that the reason that a lay person
kisses the hand of a Priest or Bishop is to show respect to his Apostolic
office. More importantly, however, since both hold the Holy Mysteries in their
hands during the Divine Liturgy, we show respect to the Holy Eucharist when we
kiss their hands. In fact, Saint John Chrysostomos once said that if one were
to meet an Orthodox Priest walking along with an Angel, that he should greet
the Priest first and kiss his hand, since that hand has touched the Body and
Blood of our Lord. For this latter reason, we do not normally kiss the hand of
a Deacon. [98] While a Deacon in the Orthodox Church holds the first level of
the Priesthood (Deacon, Presbyter, Bishop), his service does not entail
blessing the Mysteries. When we take leave of a Priest or Bishop, we should
again ask for a blessing, just as we did when we first greeted him.

In the case of married clergy,
the wife of a Priest or Deacon is also informally addressed with a title. Since
the Mystery of Marriage binds a Priest and his wife together as "one
flesh," [99] the wife shares in a sense her husband's Priesthood. This
does not, of course, mean that she has the very Grace of the Priesthood or its
office, but the dignity of her husband's service certainly accrues to her.
[100] The various titles used by the national Churches are listed below. The
Greek titles, since they have English correspondents, are perhaps the easiest
to use in the West:

The wife of a Deacon is called
"Diakonissa [Thee—a—kó—nees—sa]" in Greek. The Slavic Churches
commonly use the same title for the wife of a Deacon as they do for the wife of
a Priest. In any case, the wife of a Priest should normally be addressed with
both her title and her name in informal situations (e.g., "Presbytera
Mary," "Diakonissa Sophia," etc.).

Greeting Clergy on the
Telephone. Whenever you speak to Orthodox clergy of Priestly rank on the
telephone, you should always begin your conversation by asking for a blessing:
"Father, bless." When speaking with a Bishop, you should say
"Bless, Despota [Thés—po—ta]" (or "Vladika [Vlá—dee—ka]"
in Slavonic, "Master" in English). It is also appropriate to say,
"Bless, Your Grace" (or "Your Eminence," etc.). You should
end your conversation by asking for a blessing again.

Addressing Clergy in a Letter.
When we write to a clergyman (and, by custom, monastics), we should open
our letter with the greeting, "Bless, Father." At the end of the
letter, it is customary to close with the following line: "Kissing your
right hand...." It is not appropriate to invoke a blessing on a clergyman,
as many do: "May God bless you." Not only does this show a certain
spiritual arrogance before the image of the cleric, but laymen do not have the
Grace of the Priesthood and the prerogative to bless in their stead. Even a
Priest properly introduces his letters with the words, "The blessing of
the Lord" or "May God bless you," rather than offering his own
blessing. Though he can do the latter, humility prevails in his behavior, too.
Needless to say, when a clergyman writes to his ecclesiastical superior, he
should ask for a blessing and not bestow one.

Formal Address. Deacons in
the Orthodox Church are addressed as "The Reverend Deacon," if they
are married Deacons. If they are Deacons who are also monks, they are addressed
as "The Reverend Hierodeacon." If a Deacon holds the honor of
Archdeacon or Protodeacon, he is addressed as "The Reverend
Archdeacon" or "The Reverend Protodeacon." Deacons hold a rank
in the Priesthood and are, therefore, not laymen. This is an important point to
remember, since so many Orthodox here in America have come to think of the
Deacon as a kind of "quasi—Priest." This is the result of Latin
influence and poor teaching. As members of the Priesthood, Deacons must be
addressed, as we noted above, as "Father" (or "Deacon Father").

Orthodox Priests are addressed as
"The Reverend Father," if they are married Priests. If they are
Hieromonks (monks who are also Priests), they are addressed as "The
Reverend Hieromonk." Priests with special honors are addressed in this
manner: an Archimandrite (the highest monastic rank below that of Bishop),
"The Very Reverend Archimandrite" (or, in the Slavic jurisdictions,
"The Right Reverend Archimandrite"); and Proto-presbyters, "The
Very Reverend Protopresbyter." In personal address, as we noted above, all
Priests are called "Father," usually followed by their first names
(e.g., "Father John").

Bishops in the Orthodox Church
are addressed as "The Right Reverend Bishop," followed by their first
name (e.g., "The Right Reverend Bishop John"). Archbishops,
Metropolitans, and Patriarchs are addressed as "The Most Reverend
Archbishop" ("Metropolitan," or "Patriarch"). Because
they are also monastics, all ranks of Archpastors (Bishops, Archbishops,
Metropolitans, or Patriarchs) are addressed by their first names or first names
and sees (e.g., "Bishop John of San
Francisco"). It is not correct to use the family
name of a Bishop—or any monastic for that matter. Though many monastics and
Bishops use their family names, even in Orthodox countries like Russia and Greece, this is absolutely improper
and a violation of an ancient Church custom.

All male monastics in the
Orthodox Church are called "Father," whether they hold the Priesthood
or not, and are formally addressed as "Monk (name)," if they
do not have a Priestly rank. If they are of Priestly rank, they are formally
addressed as "Hieromonk" or "Hierodeacon" (see above).
Monastics are some-times addressed according to their monastic rank; for
example, "Rasophore—monk (name)," "Stavrophore—monk (name),"
or "Schemamonk (name)." The Abbot of a monastery is addressed
as "The Very Reverend Abbot," whether he holds Priestly rank or not
and whether or not he is an Archimandrite by rank. Under no circumstances
whatsoever is an Orthodox monk addressed by laymen as "Brother." This
is a Latin custom. The term "Brother" is used in Orthodox monasteries
in two instances only: first, to designate beginners in the monastic life
(novices or, in Greek, dokimoi ["those being tested"]), who
are given a blessing, in the strictest tradition, to wear only the inner
cassock and a monastic cap; and second, as an occasional, informal form of
address between monastics themselves (including Bishops).

Again, as we noted above, a monk
should never use his last name. This reflects the Orthodox understanding of monasticism,
in which the monastic dies to his former self and abandons all that identified
him in the world. Lay people are also called to respect a monk's death to his
past. (In Greek practice, a monk sometimes forms a new last name from the name
of his monastery. Thus a monk from the Saint Gregory Palamas Monastery [Mone
Agiou Gregoriou Palama, in Greek] might take the name Agiogregorites.)

The titles which we have used for
male monastics also apply to female monastics. In fact, a community of female
monastics is often called a "monastery" rather than a convent (though
there is nothing improper, as some wrongly claim, in calling a monastery for
women a "convent"), just as the word "convent," in its
strictest meaning, can apply to a monastic community of males, too. Women
monastics are formally addressed as "Nun (name)" or
"Rasophore—nun (name)," etc., and the Abbess of a convent is
addressed as "The Very Reverend Abbess." Though traditions for
informal address vary, in most places, Rasophore nuns are called "Sister,"
while any monastic above the rank of Rasophore is called "Mother."
Novices are addressed as "Sister."

There are, as we have noted, some
differences in the way that Orthodox religious are addressed. What we have
given above corresponds to a reasonably standardized vocabulary as one would
find it in more traditional English—language Orthodox writings and among
English—speaking Orthodox monastics. The influx of Latin converts into Orthodox
monasticism and the phenomenon of "monasticism by convenient rule, instant
tradition, and fabrication," as Archbishop Chrysostomos of Etna has called
it, are things that have also led to great confusion in the use of English
terminology that corresponds more correctly to the vocabulary of traditional
Orthodox monastics.

From
Father David Cownie and Presbytera Juliana Cownie, A Guide to Orthodox Life
(Etna, CA: Center for Traditionalist Orthodox Studies, 1996), pp. 90-96.

+ + +

Is there a proper way to
address and sign letters to clergy/fellow Orthodox?

When one writes a clergyman, he
should begin his letter in this way: "Bless!" or "Father
Bless!" or "I ask for your blessing." The letter may be signed:
"In Christ," "Asking for your prayers," etc. Lay people should
refrain from blessing a Priest (i.e., "God bless you"), and Priests
should greet each other with a simple request for a blessing. Lay people may
greet each other with a simple request for prayers and close their letters in
the same way. The flowery exhortations that were especially popular in the nineteenth-century
Russian Church ("Christ is in our
midst", "Glory be to God," inter alia), and usually taken
from the Liturgy, are not traditional forms of greeting for clergy or for lay
people. Nor are the greetings exchanged between great Church Fathers and the
Saints. Though these high-sounding exhortations are very popular now, since
they appeal to the Protestant evangelical piety which has invaded the Church,
when used by the poor Christians that we are today, they are at odds with the
humility which derives from a piety engendered by submission to Christ and to
the traditions of His Church.

What
is a real friend actually? A person who accompanies us in our walks?
Maybe the people with whom we hang out for many hours? Or maybe the
person who supports us in our difficulties? Is it possible to have many
friends?

The priceless value of
friendship is beyond any dispute. It is taken for granted. The man is
created to have friends! Therefore, it is indispensable to have
friends... But, what is a friend? I am sure you've heard that your true
friends are revealed when you go through the difficult times. But I
think that they are also revealed at your happy moments...

A friend is the person who

is nearby you, without expecting for any kind of
compensation, who doesn't have any intention to profit from you. He is
the one who cares about you unconditionally and without having your
need. The people you just hang out with, are they actually your friends?
Time will show if they really are. A friend is someone who accepts you
exactly as you are without judging you or laughing at you behind your
back.

When your company at
school, at your work is laughing at you because you are fasting or
because you confess your sins to a Father or when you feel awkward when
you are with them, then you may have to redefine some things. Friendship
is something durable in time. Something that is tested. Something that
passes through the fire of the difficulties. It's something rare and
difficult. But it's also something so special! But there is a big BUT.
What is that? Friends are not only the others for you BUT you are also a
friend for them! So, don't expect everything from the others. The God
gave us a big rule: "Love the Lord your God...(and) your neighbor as
yourself". Do you know what this means? You have to love with no limits,
no prejudices, honestly. So, the secret of friendship is that you,
first, have to love purely and honestly! To make the first step!

Two elder people living as monks for many years, had never quarreled
about anything. One day, one says to another: "Let's argue, at least
once, about something like people use to do". The other said: "I don't
know how to do that". The first monk says: "Look, I'll put this brick
right here in the middle. I'll say it's mine and you'll say that it's
yours and that's how we'll start arguing". So, they put a brick in front
of them. Then, the first monk says: "This brick is mine". The other
monk says: "No, it's not yours. It's mine". Then, the first monk says:
"Well, if it's yours, take it". And then they instantly stopped arguing
without finding any reason to quarrel any more...

03/02/2012

Several years ago a young student
approached me. Very hesitantly but in the strength of a demanding seeker, he
told me he was an atheist but would really like to believe, but he couldn't. He
was trying and seeking for years with no result. He talked to professors and
educated people, but his thirst for something serious was not satisfied. He
heard about me and decided to share with me his existential need. He asked me
for scientific proof of God's existence. “Are you familiar with integrals or
differential equations?” I asked. “Unfortunately not”, he replied, “I study
philosophy”. “That's unfortunate, because I knew one such a proof” I said,
obviously joking.

He felt awkward and remained
silent for a little while. “Look”, I said, “I'm sorry for teasing you a bit,
but God is not an equation or a mathematical proof. If He were such, then all
educated people would believe in Him. You should know that God is approached in
a different way. Have you ever been to Mount Athos?
Have you ever met an ascetic?” “No father, but I am thinking about going. I've
heard so much! If you tell me, I can even go tomorrow! Do you know any educated
person whom I can go meet?” “What do you prefer? An educated man who is able to
dizzy you or a saint who is able to wake you up?” “I prefer the educated man. I
am afraid of saints”. “Faith is a matter of the heart. Why don't you try a
saint. What is your name?” I asked. “Gabriel” he answered. I sent him to an
ascetic. I told him how to get onto Athos and gave him appropriate directions.
We even made a map. “Go” I said, “and ask the same thing: I am an atheist, say
to him, and I want to... believe. I want proof of God's existence”.

“I am afraid, I am shy”, he
replied. “Why are you shy and afraid of a saint and are not shy and afraid of
me?” I asked. “Simply go and ask the same thing”. A few days later, he went to
meet the ascetic and found him talking with a young man in his yard. On the
opposite side, another four people sat on some logs. Gabriel timidly found a
seat among them. No more than ten minutes passed by when the elder's discussion
with the young man ended.

“How are you lads?” he asked.
“have you treated yourselves to any sweets? Have you had some water?” “Thank
you elder”, they answered in an agreeable worldly politeness. “Come here”, he
says addressing Gabriel and differentiating him from the others. “I'll bring
water and you bring the box with the sweets. And come closer so that I can tell
you a secret: It is alright for someone to be an atheist, but to have the name
of an angel and be an atheist? This is the first time we've seen something like
this”.

Our friend nearly had a heart
attack from the sudden revelation. How did he know his name? Who told him his
problem? What did the elder actually want to tell him? “Father, may I talk to
you for a while?” being hardly able to murmur. “Look, now, it is almost dusk.
Take a sweet, drink some water and go to the closest monastery to spend the
night”.

“Father, I would like to talk,
can't we?” “What'll we talk about, my chap? For the reason you're here?” “To
this question I immediately felt my breath opening up”, the youth later
narrated, “my heart overfilling with faith, my inner world warming up, my
questions answered without any logical argument, without any discussion, without
the existence of a clear answer.

“Automatically all 'ifs' were
shattered inside of me, the 'whys', the 'maybes', and the only thing remaining
from now on was 'how' and 'what'”. Whatever the thoughts of the educated did
not give him, the kind hint of a saint gave him, one who's schooling reached
only the fourth grade. Saints are most discerning. They operate on you without
anesthesia and you don't feel pain. They give you a transplant without opening
up your belly. They elevate you to inaccessible peaks without using ladders of
worldly logic. They implant faith in you, without tiring your mind...

What happens when technology and big money work together for God's
Glory? Just watch this great presentation of Moscow Exhibition The
Revival, great New 2012 Year Gift for all of us. Glory to God for All
Things!